Are European Visitors on Decline

[Michaelatv Destiny]

It seems to me, that the decline of European users is in Free-Fall?

I been away a long time, but recently hit the Second Life Trail again.  I Just finished building a really nice Sexy HD 720 Cinema complex, expensive interactive solarium , cannabis Friendly & and information from Leafly "Clear", and "NORML", which strives to legalise MJ use in Britain and other EU countries... and lots more besides and pay a server to stream my own collection of paid adult movies as well as Chosen Adverts or trailers as you would see in a real cinema, I should be doing well, as my landlord's Club is right next door,I have a dancing Bot pole dancer, and Daniel Craig Bot being the bartender. but Its still empty today, unlike pre 2011, I was manager of a German She-male club, which was fairly busy, and frantic at weekends. Every store of 30-40 were rented, and other Clubs, which I enjoyed the company of other European Girls and guys seems to totally gone off the radar.

But Even though I have A  classified Ad going, a large Slide show in F- Halls huge adult sim, my United Kingdom Friends are disappointed the day time seems almost empty.  Airports in Blakes Seas are like Ghost Towns. The Huge famous NOR Urban combat land of 12 sims has gone completely, when pre 2011 There was 70 avatars in those Sims, every day mostly French, UK, German, Austrian, and later swelled by Numbers from parts of the world waking up to 100 plus fraternity  residents.. so it was Normal on Saturday & Sunday, the main Sim had a waiting list to enter, because it was full. But, actually not many Americans were into Urban Combat, But this didn't matter, as there was plenty of people from my Time zone especially Dutch, that were veterans from 2007 like me.

What I am finding now, is even Gorean Sims, that me and my best friend used to be part of, in  panther tribes, she hardly logs on now, because in The GMT zone, Gorean is pretty much empty as well.

The other annoying matter is the lack of any daytime support for stores, tickets,& admin calls go unanswered. leaving many Europeans with No land tag after renting land until the next day, or any sort of support or answers about land problems.. I find almost all Online Indicator  boards are all mostly RED in the European zone daytime.

There was always a balanced mix of people from different time Zones, but Its frustrating to spend money and patience building a themed Sim, but boring and money wasting If No one seems to be visiting any of the adult clubs during GMT or CET. Time.

I know My UK resident friends like me, are suffering bad GBP to US$ rate because of Brexit, but this is offset somewhat by the increase of prims available, which keeps the prices of smaller parcels attractive. Still  Homestead and Full Sims to rent, are still to high for struggling Brits, with diesel pollution surcharges, council and housing benefit capped to a ridiculous degree, Life Insurances policies are everywhere  NHS almost broken, and Funeral plan sites eat up our mediocre income... Petrol prices remain stubbornly high and again, Rail travel is a Joke,you need a mortgage Just to travel 150 miles on old packed trains, so that most haven't even got enough at end of week to pay a couple of weeks weeks tiers.  But other EU countries are not affected at this time by Brexit, and I wonder what is driving the European users away, Which used to fill the Second Life daytime EU time Zones. Has there been a Shift away to more Android gaming  Devices & interactive Consoles like the PS4 and smart Tvs?  I myself use BlueStacks on my wide screen monitor, to play Penny Dreadful (Demimonde) game and also a keen user of "The Walking Dead No man's land" game.

maybe some of us have lost faith in Lindens U turn on building a new second life,? hopefully we had hoped for new areas such as oceans made seamlessly, to be able to sail or fly without crashing at every sim, which by today's standards of seamless gaming is Archaic to say the least.

I would welcome any comments , because I am a returner from around 2014, but find it depressing that EU time zone daytimes are almost empty of residents, only people like me retired, seem to be on-line during daytime, but finding people to talk to in pre 2011 or form a relationship was easy, not so now, the only firm thing I know is, griefers are still active!!!

 

 

 

[Alwin Alcott]

24 minutes ago, Michaelatv Destiny said:

It seems to me, that the decline of European users is in Free-Fall?

 

not at all... seeing and meeting them all day long nearly everywhere

[Madelaine McMasters]

I know a couple Europeans who are in decline. But, besides Alwin and Phil (Brexit notwithstanding), I think the rest are doing fine.

;-).

[Callum Meriman]

All numbers are on the decline. Europeans, Oceanics, and Americans.

You do see the drop between numbers now and numbers a few years ago, but the same drop is there in American numbers too.

[CheriColette]

Im meeting more Australian and Kiwis inworld these days, which is lovely for me

Edited April 9, 2017 by CheriColette Resident

[Alwin Alcott]

3 hours ago, CheriColette Resident said:

Im meeting more Australian and Kiwis inworld these days, which is lovely for me

in the male "section" they opened some cans from south america an east europeans

[Phil Deakins]

10 hours ago, Madelaine McMasters said:

I know a couple Europeans who are in decline. But, besides Alwin and Phil (Brexit notwithstanding), I think the rest are doing fine.

;-).

lol. That very concept of "in decline" crossed my mind when I first read the op

[greek Wingtips]

 Spoken to many that are leaving due to the  Euro,£ against the $ that have been members with land or downsizing to basic, with the exchange rate as it,it's becoming expensive so I don't know the answer to entice Europeans back, I'm finding it difficult too.

[Alwin Alcott]

1 hour ago, greek Wingtips said:

 Spoken to many that are leaving due to the  Euro,£ against the $ that have been members with land or downsizing to basic, with the exchange rate as it,it's becoming expensive so I don't know the answer to entice Europeans back, I'm finding it difficult too.

the exchange rates always fluctuated... that's not new since the day those started, lóng before SL .. people give the reason to the exchange, but i think in most cases it's economics... there's less income and more job insecurity in rl. People realize now more than ever they only can spend their dollor/euro/pound once.

The biggest bang some years ago came with LL starting collecting the VAT, for people in europe nearly everything got 20% more expensive than USA members. Big landholdings were only interesting for companies from than... they can deduct VAT.

[Marigold Devin]

On 08/04/2017 at 7:48 PM, Michaelatv Destiny said:

It seems to me, that the decline of European users is in Free-Fall?

I been away a long time, but recently hit the Second Life Trail again.  I Just finished building a really nice Sexy HD 720 Cinema complex, expensive interactive solarium , cannabis Friendly & and information from Leafly "Clear", and "NORML", which strives to legalise MJ use in Britain and other EU countries... and lots more besides and pay a server to stream my own collection of paid adult movies as well as Chosen Adverts or trailers as you would see in a real cinema, I should be doing well, as my landlord's Club is right next door,I have a dancing Bot pole dancer, and Daniel Craig Bot being the bartender. but Its still empty today, unlike pre 2011, I was manager of a German She-male club, which was fairly busy, and frantic at weekends. Every store of 30-40 were rented, and other Clubs, which I enjoyed the company of other European Girls and guys seems to totally gone off the radar.

But Even though I have A  classified Ad going, a large Slide show in F- Halls huge adult sim, my United Kingdom Friends are disappointed the day time seems almost empty.  Airports in Blakes Seas are like Ghost Towns. The Huge famous NOR Urban combat land of 12 sims has gone completely, when pre 2011 There was 70 avatars in those Sims, every day mostly French, UK, German, Austrian, and later swelled by Numbers from parts of the world waking up to 100 plus fraternity  residents.. so it was Normal on Saturday & Sunday, the main Sim had a waiting list to enter, because it was full. But, actually not many Americans were into Urban Combat, But this didn't matter, as there was plenty of people from my Time zone especially Dutch, that were veterans from 2007 like me.

What I am finding now, is even Gorean Sims, that me and my best friend used to be part of, in  panther tribes, she hardly logs on now, because in The GMT zone, Gorean is pretty much empty as well.

The other annoying matter is the lack of any daytime support for stores, tickets,& admin calls go unanswered. leaving many Europeans with No land tag after renting land until the next day, or any sort of support or answers about land problems.. I find almost all Online Indicator  boards are all mostly RED in the European zone daytime.

There was always a balanced mix of people from different time Zones, but Its frustrating to spend money and patience building a themed Sim, but boring and money wasting If No one seems to be visiting any of the adult clubs during GMT or CET. Time.

I know My UK resident friends like me, are suffering bad GBP to US$ rate because of Brexit, but this is offset somewhat by the increase of prims available, which keeps the prices of smaller parcels attractive. Still  Homestead and Full Sims to rent, are still to high for struggling Brits, with diesel pollution surcharges, council and housing benefit capped to a ridiculous degree, Life Insurances policies are everywhere  NHS almost broken, and Funeral plan sites eat up our mediocre income... Petrol prices remain stubbornly high and again, Rail travel is a Joke,you need a mortgage Just to travel 150 miles on old packed trains, so that most haven't even got enough at end of week to pay a couple of weeks weeks tiers.  But other EU countries are not affected at this time by Brexit, and I wonder what is driving the European users away, Which used to fill the Second Life daytime EU time Zones. Has there been a Shift away to more Android gaming  Devices & interactive Consoles like the PS4 and smart Tvs?  I myself use BlueStacks on my wide screen monitor, to play Penny Dreadful (Demimonde) game and also a keen user of "The Walking Dead No man's land" game.

maybe some of us have lost faith in Lindens U turn on building a new second life,? hopefully we had hoped for new areas such as oceans made seamlessly, to be able to sail or fly without crashing at every sim, which by today's standards of seamless gaming is Archaic to say the least.

I would welcome any comments , because I am a returner from around 2014, but find it depressing that EU time zone daytimes are almost empty of residents, only people like me retired, seem to be on-line during daytime, but finding people to talk to in pre 2011 or form a relationship was easy, not so now, the only firm thing I know is, griefers are still active!!!

 

 

 

I also had a couple of years away from Second Life, but noticed on logging in that there seemed to be still 36,000+ users logged in at any one time, and the people I met in world while going through old landmarks (admittedly many of which had gone completely from the map). 

My own observations are that, while some things remain the same, there is an evolutionary process happening in Second Life, just like in real life. People go through life changes, job changes, house moves, etc.  New inventions, new creations, sims close, stores close, sims open, stores open.  

Maybe the class divide is getting bigger in Second Life, with it seeming quite expensive to put together what is now seen to be a good quality avatar. Maybe. 

Most of my Second Life friends are from the USA; I haven't found this Euro:Pound Sterling:USA Dollars/L$ dollar rate having much of a diffference in Second Life. Just like when they shove another ten pence onto a bottle of whisky or a packet of cigarettes in real life, people find a way to pay for their leisure and pleasure, if they really want it.  

When you and I decided to take our respective breaks from Second Life, many other new residents were starting their Second Lives, and I do think the percentage from Europe remains the same.

[Michaelatv Destiny]

To be honest Linden Labs policy of the L$ Not being real Currency, more like Play money is open to dispute, because in every game I have played, be it WOW, SWTOR, Dark Orbit, Battlefield 3-4, Penny Dreadful and most Android for Phones or  used on Blue stacks through the Google Play store are set prices every month. Linden Labs float the L$ against real time Market rates, hence in my opinion that makes it a bona fide Virtual currency. Why its linked to The finance markets I have never known, because Lindens have always maintained this a GAME, not a Financial Business Model or has any sort of official standing in World markets. 

 

Lindens do themselves no favours by still not setting land or parcel Tiers at a frozen rate. That would help struggling people, who live in areas with economic uncertainty's. Perhaps If Lindens froze Their L$ rate without floating it against real currencies or a couple of years, More Euro residents like from UK and Greece, and other countries struggling to cope, maybe could at least have a chance of their virtual little stores to survive. LL fail to recognise that  CA is a state which probably has the highest Real Estate prices, High tourism, Actors and Rich Sporting heroes living there make CA One of the Richest Areas of the world, but They seem to forget, 90% of the worlds population live in tiny apartments, small terrace houses, and Not the huge Mansions that exist in CA and surrounding states, that benefit form CA's massive income. Don't forget CA also makes nearly 1Billion$ income PER year from legalised Cannabis Taxes and sales tax rather like Colorado that returned figures much the same for 2015................Nearly all European Cities are stubborn to legalise it and benefit from Millions of Euro's or GBP from its sales.  So, really CA lives in its own rich Bubble, many Sims are turning the SL Map ever more yellow or abandoned land, left empty because Their previous owners haven't the disposable income any more that we enjoyed pre 2011. Lets not forget, that terror attacks, like life , still goes one, But does have an impact on peoples security & that does have a negative impact on the worlds markets.

Financial markets hate uncertainty, and if Russia and the US get into the so called Proxy war over Syria, Wall Street and London to name a few, could see a financial collapse of the like not seen since the 1900's. Already today China and Japan, ( I note Toshiba) is to be sold off and broken up, leaving thousands with uncertainty if there going to go back to work in  the morning. All these factors have NEVER been taken into consideration by fat cat Executives of Linden labs living in sprawling Mansions with swimming pools, that most us could only dream off. In the end LL will pay a heavy price for being  complacent and not changing its pricing policy to most of the mainline gaming Companies, that don't use their game coins or jewels currency as a means to make even more Money. L$ is outdated, unfair game money, that should not be floated to make easy money, its like LL is playing the stock market, To me thats not a GAME as LL says, it is not a game, it a business financial Structure made to maximise LL profits, the insane 10L charge to upload one image should be abolished, as that's just A punitive exploitation of residents who. like me, have to upload a lot's of images for store photo Sets, slide shows, media presentations and lots more.

As an example last June 2016 My 65k Blakes Sea Airport Land cost me £49 a week. After Brexit, the next weeks Tier had shot up to £55. I , on a state pension along with the wife, had to let my Friend take it over, as it just wasn't possible to cope with a £6 rise a week, even after that, my friend had to give it up last month, as we are both Brits and lots of renters were Brits, hangers started to go empty, flights became none existent, and even though I helped out with some tier for her, by renting a parcel for my HM Coastguard station and vessels, She sold the Sim, she had taken a year to buy, because she was losing money, by the tiers not covering the outgoings..... LL maintenance policy which I always think is illegal. You buy a car its yours. You buy 65K land for £900 it still not yours, LL creams money from a maintenance charge. They dont need that, they have enough income coming in  already.  Its little wonder old 2005 bugs still remain, still no seamless oceans to sail or fly in, Abandoned land is never put up for sale like it should be, leaving huge swathes  of Governer Linden land devoid of residents.  Thats some Governor, who cant be bothered to put the abandoned land up for sale  as soon its been vacated??

SL needs to downgrade to a normal game platform, most newcomers I have met recently are leaving after a couple of weeks because, now the mentors are no longer, (which I was one and A mentor in the old urban combat sims,) because, most  go about Second Life, trying to work out what a ban line is or an orb,( cant understand why they being chucked out of sims)  and group and land and media is far over complicated, for gamers used to just putting a disc in the PS4 tray or playing a hi graphic Online game like "Revelation", which I have just started playing, and spent no money on it so far. "Crowfall", a new game that I was a fund raiser for, as some Second Life residents Like the "Chung" family were in the staff of making it, has failed to to open on  time, because of various issues, pushing back the release date and that's also losing funding backers unless its team open it soon, and millions of $ or GBP already pledged by myself and others, may have to call for refunds if it fails to launch.

oh well. time to shut up!!, and pull down my new cinema complex, as 5 people a week only visit, no tips no visitors, waste of weekly tier money and classified advert cash if I have to fund the whole parcel & advertising. The time is ripe for Lindens to introduce a monthly sub to access SL, like Star wars the Old Republic. In my opinion this needs doing to verify age, because there is some Vile places around, which in the UK that are actually illegal to look at or interact with, like Zoophlia doggy stuff. Thats illegal in the UK wether its virtual or not. Lindens should be concerned about making a family orientated SL instead of bizzare sickening adult places which gives SL a bad name like in the Sky News reports os some years ago. Thank you for the comments, but seems the answer lies in Lindens hands to make this a better, less complicated and affordable place to enjoy.. Micha

After Note: (One poster mentioned new Avatar and clothing. I still have a classic Avatar as born in 2007, I dont understand mesh and all these new heads and layers, but one club actually ejected me for not wearing an appropriate Avatar and mesh clothes, talk about giving newcomers a chance? owners of clubs must be on drugs to eject avatars just because there not using a Maitreya shape and skin...)   at my age I do not understand layers and alphas, but to remove a visitor for using his original clasic avatar just pushes even more people away.....as Spock would say. "Its Illogical"...??

 

 

 

Edited April 11, 2017 by Michaelatv Destiny
new poster comment

[Michaelatv Destiny]

Marigold Devon mentions that roughly 36,000 residents log in each day. That's a drop in  the ocean according to the wiki of Second Life,  the average number of residents logged in at any one time in 2010 was 54,000.  That's a drop of 18,000 residents average rate logging regularly in 7 years.  So I repeat, Where has these 18,000 previous users gone and why?

[Marigold Devin]

Quite topically (I think), I am currently watching (via my brother's On Demand TV service) "Rich House, Poor House" where two families, from either end of the financial spectrum swap homes for a week.  I find it interesting to see what people have to live on each week, and what they perceive to be essential spending and waste, etc. 

I'm in a similar situation to yourself, not retired as such, but because of family circumstances the budget is very tight, and so little increases seem huge.

As a retired person, you should be able to spend your time and money on whatever hobbies and activities you enjoy the most, and a price hike on your Blake Sea land of £6 a week is a lot for a pensioner, or indeed anyone in an average-waged/national minimum wage job.  Although I gasped, as £49 a week seems very steep for any hobby for the average person.

However, in the context of price rises, that is the way the cookie crumbles. When I used to have half the amount of land you had at Blake Sea, I resented the amount of VAT I had to pay, and that seriously made me reconsider my priorities. My living circumstances were slightly different; I had temporarily got more disposable income, but I knew it was not going to last in the long-term.

The fun did not stop though. I just learnt to cut my cloth according to my pocket.

Regarding what you say about the mentor scheme having stopped, Linden Lab are again trying something new, in order to retain users.

Its all evolutionary. Its Linden Lab's project/platform, and they do listen to any constructive criticism, change things here, tweak things there, based on that criticism. Some off it works, some of it doesn't.

 

In fact, just glancing through that Featured News section shows you how many things are going on.

 

All of it, from the servers to the staff to the biscuits in the meetings cost money. And also the other projects that Linden Lab are involved with - ie Sansar, Blocksworld. That's why reductions in land tiers, etc., are unlikely. 

We, the residents, have to adapt to these changes -- or not. 

I think Linden Lab know its not Bank of Toytown money they are dealing with. 

Edited April 11, 2017 by Marigold Devin
Bank of Toytown

[Marigold Devin]

2 minutes ago, Michaelatv Destiny said:

Marigold Devon mentions that roughly 36,000 residents log in each day. That's a drop in  the ocean according to the wiki of Second Life,  the average number of residents logged in at any one time in 2010 was 54,000.  That's a drop of 18,000 residents average rate logging regularly in 7 years.  So I repeat, Where has these 18,000 previous users gone and why?

No. Sorry. You misunderstood. I said 36,000+ at any one time (at any time of the day, rather than per day). Sometimes there have been more - especially weekends USA time - when I have logged in recently.

In 2010 there were still a lot of bots logged in, so that 54,000 figure was far from accurate. 

 

[Phil Deakins]

13 minutes ago, Marigold Devin said:

In 2010 there were still a lot of bots logged in

A load of them were mine

[Michaelatv Destiny]

yes Marigold Bots are giving a false visitor numbers, I own two of my own, they not there to push real visitors up, there there to provide entertainment for visitors, to be served by Daniel Craig or pay Stephanie 1L to peel off her pole dancing clothes. As second life as a Hobby, well, I got involved with Aviation in SL  many years ago.    I fly Virtual Airbuses IN Flight Sim x in real time, with actual real time procedures, and Air traffic control interaction. My Hub is Manchester Airport. I have an addon, that looks jut like the real Airport.  I fly to many European cities with Nice and Monte Carlo being my favourite destinations, I used to have a mock up cabin of an A320 in a box room, with panels which was physical, meaning to raise the landing gear, you have to pull the lever on  the panel to do so.  I Love flying in SL, apart from ocean sims not being seamless. LL refuses to make oceans seamless, And I have argued for the case many years. I used to own two 65k lands . For my British Airways complex over two sims, based on BAA land (British Airways Authority). But before LL upped the land fees the two combine lands only cost me £40. a week. But offset by £20 of that being income from fliers renting hangers and tie downs.   We had more income then,  and still ran a car as petrol was still relatively cheap. However since becoming disabled with crippling Arthritis, and now I have a suspicious  tumour plus other ailments you get when you approach 66, I don't really have a life any more, except on the computer, and Second Life as it says, allows you to do things that are impossible in real life.  The problem for us, is the Government changed lots of rules on changes to benefits we used to get. We have to pay council tax now, which pensioners were exempt from up to now.  Also because of my needs we moved into a warden controlled large sheltered 34 apartment building 40 miles away which is safer for us both, in  case I take a fall. Although some charges we dont have to pay here, we have to find £36 a week towards the rent here,because of housing benefit has been capped.... so both combined our two weekly pensions have been robbed by nearly £60 a week .  So for me, making themed sims is part of my life, I manage to use photo shop Elements 11 to make textures and posters. SL is a Hobby I used  to enjoy. An admin, a moderator, a diplomatic officer in GOR and Urban combat leader.

So I really felt in those days I was contributing a lot to the Second life community. However residents just dont seem to realise how much work and cash goes into an entertainment centre just for them. My streaming Hoster to deliver HD720 cinema quality videos on the HD VEA setup, cost me another £15 a month.  But when only 5 people visit for 10 minutes, leave without putting some Lindens in my donation jar,  It says to me, residents have no idea how much it costs to give them what they want.. They except everything to be free, thats not possible to sustain, Im not a charity after all. I am a creator (typical Gemini), but creators are not getting the financial reward for their efforts. only the Mega Sim renters make an actual living from SL. maybe quite a few clever people who understand How to build a mesh item from one those external software programs, make good money from clothes and sophisticated yachts and Airliners. Unfortunately I only know about Analogue equipment, bought up without internet and DAB radios and electronics. I ran my own garage business for 23 years before my back started to go, but Now I have no idea how modern cars work, because all the vehicles i worked on up to 1987 were simple to repair. Like escorts, Mini Clubmans, Hilman Avengers and Cortina's plus all the vans, like Transits, HA Vauxhall vans, and Commer vans the post office used. If i was maybe 20+ odd years younger, I may have got training into the digital Era, and making my own mesh models to make and texture, sadly that is beyond my capabilities, I am a mechanic, A VHS recorder Engineer for some years, so for me, SL has become even more technical , and these new avatar types, I really have no idea how to use them. I used to have 60-70 friends in SL. now I have but 10, with all my other residents long gone, which is sad.

 

[Marigold Devin]

1 hour ago, Phil Deakins said:

A load of them were mine

/me smiles mischievously. I know  

I wonder actually, were you the man who removed the piece of floor from under my feet, sending me (my avatar!) plummeting to the ground, when I found a box of bots in a skybox?  If it wasn't it really should have been. It was one of the most amusing bot-hunting sessions of my entire SLife.

[Marigold Devin]

1 hour ago, Michaelatv Destiny said:

yes Marigold Bots are giving a false visitor numbers, I own two of my own, they not there to push real visitors up, there there to provide entertainment for visitors, to be served by Daniel Craig or pay Stephanie 1L to peel off her pole dancing clothes. As second life as a Hobby, well, I got involved with Aviation in SL  many years ago.    I fly Virtual Airbuses IN Flight Sim x in real time, with actual real time procedures, and Air traffic control interaction. My Hub is Manchester Airport. I have an addon, that looks jut like the real Airport.  I fly to many European cities with Nice and Monte Carlo being my favourite destinations, I used to have a mock up cabin of an A320 in a box room, with panels which was physical, meaning to raise the landing gear, you have to pull the lever on  the panel to do so.  I Love flying in SL, apart from ocean sims not being seamless. LL refuses to make oceans seamless, And I have argued for the case many years. I used to own two 65k lands . For my British Airways complex over two sims, based on BAA land (British Airways Authority). But before LL upped the land fees the two combine lands only cost me £40. a week. But offset by £20 of that being income from fliers renting hangers and tie downs.   We had more income then,  and still ran a car as petrol was still relatively cheap. However since becoming disabled with crippling Arthritis, and now I have a suspicious  tumour plus other ailments you get when you approach 66, I don't really have a life any more, except on the computer, and Second Life as it says, allows you to do things that are impossible in real life.  The problem for us, is the Government changed lots of rules on changes to benefits we used to get. We have to pay council tax now, which pensioners were exempt from up to now.  Also because of my needs we moved into a warden controlled large sheltered 34 apartment building 40 miles away which is safer for us both, in  case I take a fall. Although some charges we dont have to pay here, we have to find £36 a week towards the rent here,because of housing benefit has been capped.... so both combined our two weekly pensions have been robbed by nearly £60 a week .  So for me, making themed sims is part of my life, I manage to use photo shop Elements 11 to make textures and posters. SL is a Hobby I used  to enjoy. An admin, a moderator, a diplomatic officer in GOR and Urban combat leader.

So I really felt in those days I was contributing a lot to the Second life community. However residents just dont seem to realise how much work and cash goes into an entertainment centre just for them. My streaming Hoster to deliver HD720 cinema quality videos on the HD VEA setup, cost me another £15 a month.  But when only 5 people visit for 10 minutes, leave without putting some Lindens in my donation jar,  It says to me, residents have no idea how much it costs to give them what they want.. They except everything to be free, thats not possible to sustain, Im not a charity after all. I am a creator (typical Gemini), but creators are not getting the financial reward for their efforts. only the Mega Sim renters make an actual living from SL. maybe quite a few clever people who understand How to build a mesh item from one those external software programs, make good money from clothes and sophisticated yachts and Airliners. Unfortunately I only know about Analogue equipment, bought up without internet and DAB radios and electronics. I ran my own garage business for 23 years before my back started to go, but Now I have no idea how modern cars work, because all the vehicles i worked on up to 1987 were simple to repair. Like escorts, Mini Clubmans, Hilman Avengers and Cortina's plus all the vans, like Transits, HA Vauxhall vans, and Commer vans the post office used. If i was maybe 20+ odd years younger, I may have got training into the digital Era, and making my own mesh models to make and texture, sadly that is beyond my capabilities, I am a mechanic, A VHS recorder Engineer for some years, so for me, SL has become even more technical , and these new avatar types, I really have no idea how to use them. I used to have 60-70 friends in SL. now I have but 10, with all my other residents long gone, which is sad.

 

My ex-partner in real life used to have a flight simulator, would be absorbed for hours on his days off. Luckily he didn't have me wearing the relevant air hostess uniform for the airline he was piloting each session when I brought him a drink/snack!  But the flight simulator has to be much more satisfying to use than trying to fly planes in Second Life. Second Life is what it is, and I don't think it could be made seamless, and to be honest, those sim crossings and the quirks they cause actually make Second Life more fun, and fun was certainly what I was seeking from Second Life. I love to drive around the mainland sims in my old banger of a truck. One of the many very creative bods scripted it to fall apart on sim borders, so by the time I get halfway to a destination, I am usually driving a doorless, over-heating wreck. And I just love that.  

The thing about residents not seeming to realise how much work and cash goes into providing a venue, I think they do. Really. Because there are usually tip jars and large notice boards that clearly give tier information and remind them how expensive it is to own/rent/run land in Second Life.

I do feel though that a lot of landowners and club owners feel its their right to be paid for all they do, when really the land and club owners are jolly lucky if they have something that attracts large numbers of visitors. What a buzz to be able to provide something that residents tell each other about.

One such place for me was The Lost Gardens of Apollo, which is no more.  It was a fantastic place for meeting, relaxing, exploring. They never asked for any money, but they did have sundials and vases which would gently remind visitors the place might not be able to run if costs could not be met at some stage in the future.  

My brother is a qualified electronics engineer, specialising in TV and video equipment, and could always carry out his own car maintenance. Its great to be so skilled. When he tried Second Life though, he was completely baffled by it. I sadly do not have his manual dexterity or logical mind, and you must also have those skills too.  Second Life is something completely different, and its a good job really that it is not compulsory to have to know how to build your avatar from the kit form it has become over recent years.  

I have kept my Second Life friends list to around 100, most of whom no longer log in.  Such is the way of life though. I mean, how many of your school friends or subsequent work colleagues do you actually keep in touch with now?

People come and people go. Shops and venues come and go. In real life and in Second Life.  

[Phil Deakins]

1 hour ago, Marigold Devin said:

/me smiles mischievously. I know  

I wonder actually, were you the man who removed the piece of floor from under my feet, sending me (my avatar!) plummeting to the ground, when I found a box of bots in a skybox?  If it wasn't it really should have been. It was one of the most amusing bot-hunting sessions of my entire SLife.

Not me, Guv. 'Onest.

But you did remind me of something I did do, that made me laugh out loud quite a few times. I've posted this in the past, so I'm sorry if you remember it. I'll make it brief. My first business was renting out skyboxes. Then I got into writing scripts for use within them. One of the things I did was make it so that the tenant could change the colour/texture on every internal surface. There were 2 low walls in each skybox that could be made totally transparent and phantom with the scripted system's menus. One day I got an IM from a tenant, asking why he was in the skybox and then suddenly found himself plummeting to the ground. I'd no idea, of course, so I checked the system and found that I'd made a mistake, so that one of the buttons made the entire floor phantom. All the skyboxes had the same error.

It wasn't that that made me laugh so much though. What did it was me imagining a tenant, exploring the menus in the system, and thinking to him/herself, "I wonder what this button does"   And I still had an audible chuckle when I thought of it again just now.

Edited April 11, 2017 by Phil Deakins

[Madelaine McMasters]

11 minutes ago, Phil Deakins said:

Not me, Guv. 'Onest.

But you did remind me of something I did do, that made me laugh out loud quite a few times. I've posted this in the past, so I'm sorry if you remember it. I'll make it brief. My first business was renting out skyboxes. Then I got into writing script for use within them. One of the things I did was make it so that the tenant could change the colour/texture on every internal surface. There were 2 low walls in each skybox that could be made totally transparent and phantom with the scripted system's menus. One day I got an IM from a tenant, asking why he was in the skybox and then suddenly found himself plummeting to the ground. I'd no idea, of course, so I chacked the system and found that I'd made a mistake, so that one of the buttons made the floor phantom. All the skyboxes had the same error.

It wasn't that that made me laugh so much though. What did it was me imagining a tenant, exploring the menus in the system, and thinking to him/herself, "I wonder what this button does"   And I still had an audible chuckle when I thought of it again just now.

Plunging into the abyss is one of my favorite SL activities. You and Mari have reminded me of this...

That was five years ago. The friend I mentioned is Scylla. And it's still one of the best things that's ever happened to me here.

[Marigold Devin]

22 minutes ago, Phil Deakins said:

Not me, Guv. 'Onest.

But you did remind me of something I did do, that made me laugh out loud quite a few times. I've posted this in the past, so I'm sorry if you remember it. I'll make it brief. My first business was renting out skyboxes. Then I got into writing script for use within them. One of the things I did was make it so that the tenant could change the colour/texture on every internal surface. There were 2 low walls in each skybox that could be made totally transparent and phantom with the scripted system's menus. One day I got an IM from a tenant, asking why he was in the skybox and then suddenly found himself plummeting to the ground. I'd no idea, of course, so I chacked the system and found that I'd made a mistake, so that one of the buttons made the floor phantom. All the skyboxes had the same error.

It wasn't that that made me laugh so much though. What did it was me imagining a tenant, exploring the menus in the system, and thinking to him/herself, "I wonder what this button does"   And I still had an audible chuckle when I thought of it again just now.

That is very funny - and although I have not read this when you may have posted it before, it was definitely worth a repeat outing.

[Phil Deakins]

That's a terrific, chuckle inspiring story, Maddy. I'd have loved to have seen all that happening.

[Phil Deakins]

1 hour ago, Marigold Devin said:

I love to drive around the mainland sims in my old banger of a truck. One of the many very creative bods scripted it to fall apart on sim borders, so by the time I get halfway to a destination, I am usually driving a doorless, over-heating wreck. And I just love that.  

Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant! I love it

 

1 hour ago, Marigold Devin said:

Second Life is something completely different, and its a good job really that it is not compulsory to have to know how to build your avatar from the kit form it has become over recent years.  

I do like that way of thinking about mesh avatars. It's spot on.

[Madelaine McMasters]

1 hour ago, Marigold Devin said:

I love to drive around the mainland sims in my old banger of a truck. One of the many very creative bods scripted it to fall apart on sim borders, so by the time I get halfway to a destination, I am usually driving a doorless, over-heating wreck. And I just love that.  

I'm with Phil. That's just fantastic.

I had a friend in college who drove a car that was literally falling apart. There was always some recently detached piece of it in the back seat and the rear passenger window was a plastic bag. We went shopping one day and, as I closed the passenger door, a big chunk of rusted metal and Bondo fell to the ground. I tossed it into the back seat through a tear in the plastic bag. As we headed into the store he looked at me and said "Did you lock your door?" I laughed so hard I was in tears.

[Michaelatv Destiny]

Haha! Quite funny your Ex didnt try and get you to be  your cabin  crew.  Actually I do have a bevy of lady followers  in some James Bond groups on face book, that liked my screen shots of my Airbus 320 and my virtual cockpit, and it being fuelled and the passenger coach embarking passengers. I started up doing holiday flights for us, and was going to make a video of a flight containing some of my friends, it was to "Nice" in fact, and I had My Texan friend as chief hostess, as she was the mature lady, and you couldn't say no to our bossy boots Friend!! My South African friend wanted to be second hostess  and I called her Moneypenny, which has stuck with her for a couple of years now LOL., the others wanted to serve drinks and especially a "Vesper", Daniel Craigs yummy cocktail he named a Vesper in Casino Royale. Unfortunately FSX has its own problems. it was made to run on Windows XP, Microsoft dumped it rather than make a windows 7 version of it, so its not supported or an updates for a long time now, and that leads to constant crashing of the program, which your 40 minutes into a flight over the Swiss Alps at 30,000 feet, would just disappear and you had to restart all over again. it wasnt worth the investment in further Saitek controls, as they are £100 an Instrument panel.  There are lots of sites showing how to make FSX more stable, but its beyond me, as you have to use special programs and change parts of the Bios and registry, which is only for technical savvy computer users. I used to screens, One large widescreen for main view, and a secondary one on right, to drag the Throttle quadrants, the braking system and ATC window.  That in itself was quite hard, so hard in  fact, I went bought a refurbished XP computer just to be able to use FSX as it was meant to be.  Im a certified Air traffic controller here in Second Life, I passed the exams and finished with  a practical ATC test of directing my mentor into a landing at new Horizons Airport. There are only about 4-6 people in SL with the title now, but again, things have changed, its not realistic any more, airport owners use automated landing and take off ATC programs, so I am redundant, and anyway, fliers dont take the procedures for starting up, taxiing or waiting for clearance any more, they fly sophisticated Airliners, But cant be bothered to use real life procedures on approach , cruising or landing, the grid system also adds hopeless lag to try and land on  runways correctly, and its daft, that creators make high quality Aircraft, but LL wont go the extra mile and make it easier to pass onto another Sim at 50 knots more easier. really this old fashioned grid system is holding back the development of pay to fly programs, because although theres a group called SL passengers, until there is a 99% chance the flight with 5 avatars will actually make it to another destination, there is no way passengers are going to pay up front for flights, if they going to end up on sea bed. Also did you know, oceans that are empty, still show 80% lag on my French made lag tester meter, there should be NIL, because there is nothing in an ocean, its something that LL has failed to tackle since 2010. Where did your ex fly from and to?